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She sighs. “Except keep your ego in check.”
My lips twitch but I don’t smile. I lean closer to whisper in her ear. “Have I told you how beautiful you look tonight?”
She shivers slightly. “No, but I’d love to hear it.”
“You’re practically glowing,dolcezza.”
I lightly graze the curve of her ear with my teeth to prove a point. She jerks slightly. When I pull away, her cheeks are tinged pink, and I smile in satisfaction.
We navigate the crowd, heading to where my brother and his wife are standing. Daniella beams at the sight of Astoria and hugs her like they’re long-time friends. Tori seems a little uncomfortable, but as soon as Dany starts chatting her up about her dress, she relaxes.
“How was your trip?” Christian asks me.
I grit my teeth as I remember how terribly things went. “Don’t ask.”
“Well, I’ve got some good news. We might be able to contain Romano before an all-out gang war. He currently hiding out somewhere in Manhattan, but I know just how to draw him out.”
“Good for you, brother,” I tell him.
“Yeah. Things might be looking up. Malone also signed off on the release of our men that he had in custody.”
“He did?” I ask warily.
“According to Topher, Katherine talked to him and they came to an understanding. He has promised to stop breathing down our necks and instead find something else to occupy his time. So long as we don’t commit any crimes in his city.”
“Well, how the hell are we going to do that? We run this city.”
“Yeah well, we have to fall back and stay off the radar with the FBI for a while.”
“I guess all that’s left is to take care of Bianchi,” I state, my gaze traveling to Astoria’s parents at the end of the room.
They’re surrounded by a group of people who are enthusiastically gesturing at the paintings. I’m much more concerned by the feeling of inadequacy in my gut. Christian’s counting on me. I need to speed things up with the building.
Daniella leads us down the aisle, showing us the various paintings being displayed. I’m only half-listening. Astoria’s sidled up beside me and when she intertwines our fingers, I don’t object to the warmth of her hand in mine. I tell myself it’s all for show, but I honestly don’t know anymore.
My feelings are a jumbled-up mess.
I stumble to a stop when I recognize someone in front of us. Astoria stops as well, then Christian and Dany, who are behind us. The sight of Cara Oshiro has me gritting my teeth.
I haven’t seen her in over a month. Not since the hotel. I’ve been trying to give her some space.
She offers me a nervous smile. Then her eyes drop to mine and Astoria’s hands and her smile slips.
I understand how this must seem to her. I slowly unlace my fingers from Astoria and try to smile, although I’m sure it’s more of a grimace. Technically, I don’t owe her anything, but after the way our last encounter ended, it feels a little shitty of me to be throwing a new relationship in her face.
“Hey, Cara. Fancy seeing you here.”
There’s hurt in her expression as she looks at me. Her green eyes narrowed, she glances at Astoria before affixing me with a glare.
“Have I mentioned you’re an asshole?”
This is a fucking mess.
CHAPTER13
Astoria
So this is her. The woman Carlo was in a relationship with before he met me. She’s beautiful, and while I will never be that girl who compares herself to other girls and demeans herself in the process, it’s a little hard to watch my “boyfriend” reunite with his ex.
